Pneumatic dispatch-tube receiver



(No Model.)

s. F. LEAKEQ PNEUMATIC DISPATCH TUBE RECEIVER. No. 431,701.

Patented July 8, 1890.

' UNITED'STTANT'ESK PATENT OFFICE.

- SAMUEL F. LEAKE, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

PNEUMATIC DISPATCH-TUBE RECEIVER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 431,701, dated July 8, 1890. Application filed October ,26, 1889 Serial Ila 323348. (N model.)

.To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL F. LEAKE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pneumatic Dispatch-Tube Receivers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable'others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has relation to stopping the travel or movement of a pneumaticdispatchcarrier by causing it to compress air ahead of it in the receiver ends or tubes at the main and sub stations of pneumaticdispatch-tube systems; and it has for its object an apparatus for quickly stopping the carrier in a short length of receiver without producing the concussion usually incident thereto.

My invention accordingly consists of the combinations, constructions, and arrangements of parts, as hereinafter described in the specification, and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is had to the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a receiver end or tube and devices embodying my invention. form of the same, and Fig. 3 is a cross-section showing the movable section of the receiver through which the carrier is removed from the same.

A represents the receiver-tube which has a hinged folding or movable section a (see more plainly Fig. 3) toadmit of removing the carrier from tube A, and if the latter be also used as a transmitter said section a admits of introducing the carrier into tube A, all of which may be constructed and arranged as desired. In the drawings the movable section a is illustrated as being located near the front end of receiver-tube A, and adjacent to said movable section a is an air-cock or vent a for a purpose hereinafter to be described.

In front of section a on tube A is a pocket or chamber 1), in which is located a slide-valve or gate B, having a latch-head b for engagement with a lock-latch b suitably pivoted or supported, as desired. This latch 12 may be actuated by any suitable means. In the draw- Fig. 2 is a like view of another ings I have shown it controlled by an electromagnet O in a battery or, supply-circuit 1 1, having a fixed and a-movable or spring contact terminal a 0', respectively, in a side pocket or recess 0 in tube A, which movable contact a is in the path of and is moved by a traveling carrier at to close the normallyopen circuit 1 1. valve B in recess D arecorrespondingfixed and movable terminal contacts cl cl. of a normallyopen battery-circuit 2 2, which contacts (1 d are correspondingly operated by the carrier to close circuit 2 2. Near the rear end of tube A is a pipe-connection 6, having cock 6' with a reservoir E holdinga supply of compressed air, and to the stem of cock 6' is secured a In advance of the gate or suitable lever e one end of which impinges against a pivoted or fulcrumed lever 6 having an adjustable weight 6 Lever 6 1mpinges against a sliding piston e in a cylinder 6, communicating bymeansof opening c with the tube A. To lever 62 is suitably secured the core or armature f of a solenoid v indicated at g, and with the opposite end of tube A, near its removable section a, as shown at g. I

Between the reservoir E and valve B, if desired, are two or more otherpipe-connections h h, eachhaving two separate valves 712 h and leading to separate reservoirs H and H, containing supplies of air under different pressure. The valves 72. h each have stemlevers 71* and h, respectively, with adjustable weights, which levers connect, respectively, with suitable pistons 71 k in cylinders h 72. communicating with tube A. The valves k are normally open, and the valves h are normally closed. As the reservoirs H H, with their pipe-connection h h and just-described attendant appliances, may or may not be used as desired;-

at the gate or valve B it lifts the contact d (see Fig. 1) to close the circuit 2 2, the solenoid F then acts to move its core f, which in turn opens valve 6 in pipe 6 and causes lever e? to depress lever e and plunger e to the position shown in Fig. 1, whereupon the valve e being open, the compressed air in reservoir E passes into tube A, filling the same.

As soon as the carrier meets this air it begins.

to compress the same, and when the carrier passes the contact 0 the circuit 1 1 is closed, making magnet 0 active to withdraw armature latch or lever b from gate or valve B, which then falls-and closes the front end of tube A, as indicated in Fig. 2. The carrier in traveling through tube A continues compressing the air therein to quickly reduce its momentum, until, having reached the point indicated by dotted lines 00 m, Fig. 2, it stops and does not contact with the rear end of tube A. Long before reaching said point, however, the compression by the carrier of the air under pressure in tube A has beensuch that such further compression by the carrier causes the piston e to raise and close the cock 6, as indicated in Fig. 2, in order to prevent the compressed air supplied to pipe A being forced back by the carrier into reservoi-r E. Meanwhile a certain proportion of the air-pressure ahead of the carrier has found its Way through pipe G to back of the carrier, so that when the latter comes to a stateof rest and the reaction of the compressed air in't-ube A ahead of the carrier moves it the escape of air from tube A between the carrier and gate B, so that the carrier will finally come into position opposite the part a, in order that when it is moved to one side the carrier can be withdrawn from tube A.

As this is done, the pressure of air in tube from tube A the gate or valve B is manually or otherwise lifted, as desired, into engage ment with latch b 'to place all of said parts in their normal positions. It will be no ted,therefore, thatwhen the reservoir E is alone used the entire supply of one given pressure of compressed air is admitted to tube A at once, that such admission of air and cutting off of the same isunder the control of the traveling air is an addition to the air or pressure normally in tube A. When the reservoirsH H are used and the pressure of air in reservoir "E is less than that in reservoirs H H, the air-' pressure in reservoir H being less than the air-pressure in reservoir H, the pressure in the latter of which is the highest of all, the

Aescapes, and after the carrier is removed carrier in the tube A, and that such admittedoperation first described for the admission of air from reservoirE is the same as before set forth, except that as soon as the carrier in tube A compresses the air under pressure therein to an extent greater than that exerted by the weighted lever k for Valve h for reservoir H, which the carrier does before coming to cylinder h? for reservoir H, the piston h in said cylinder is elevated by such pressure to open said valve 71 to admit theincreased pressure of air from reservoir H in tube A ahead of the carrier. A further advancement of the latter causes the piston 717 in cylinder h for reservoir H to rise to close its valve h and cut off the escape of air from reservoir H,

reservoir H is raised to open valve 71 for reservoir H to admit the further increased pressure of air in reservoir I-Ito tube A. A further movement of the carrier closes valve its for reservoir H to cut off the escape of air therefrom, after which the operation is as before described, except that as soon as the carrier-is withdrawn from the tube Athe pistons in the cylinders h h and levers h h return to their normal positions to open and close the valves h 72 respectively, for the reservoirs H H.

The pressure of the levers h 7L5 on the pistons h h may be varied, as desired, by adjusting the Weights on said levers. In all cases, however, the weight on lever h for piston if of cylinder h" for the valve h for reservoir H will be adjusted to an equal or nearly equal pressure as that of lever h of cylinderpiston h for valve h for reservoir H, so that the one valve h for reservoir H will close at or nearly at the same time that the other valve h for reservoir H is opened, in order to cut off the air-supply from reservoir H before the supply in reservoir H is admitted to tube A.

As it is evident that the foregoing nove features maybe greatly varied without departing from the spirit of my invention, I do not confine myself to the same as shown and described.

What I claim is 1. In a pneumatic dispatch-tube system, the combination of a carrier-receiving tube, airsupplies of different pressure having connection with said tube, and devices for successively admitting such air-pressures to the re ceiver-tube, substantially as set forth.

2. In a pneumatic'dispatch-tube system, a carrier-receiver tube A, having movable valve or gate B, reservoir E, having pipe-connection e with valve e, actuating devices for valves B and e, and pipe-connection G for tube A between the valve B and the opposite end of tube A, substantially as set forth.

3. In a pneumatic dispatch-tube system, the combination, with a carrier-receiver tube, different supplies of air having different pressures, pipe-connections with cut-offs or valves between'said receiver-tube and air-supplies, and devices under the control of the carrier for successively admitting to the receiver-tube in advance of thecarrier such supplies of air, substantially as set forth.

i. In combination with a pneumatic dispatch-receiver tube A, a compressed-air reservoir E, having a pipe-connection with tube A, a valve in said pipe-connection, and electrically-controlled actuating devices in engagement with said valve and under the control of a traveling carrier in tube A for opening and closing said valve, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In combination with a pneumatic dispatch-tube, a compressed air-reservoir E, having a pipe-connection with said tube, a' valve in pipe-connection, electrical devices in engagement with said valve and under the control of a moving carrier in tube Afor opening said valve, and air-pressure devices in engagement with said valve and under control of said carrier for closing said valve, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination of tube A, reservoirs E H H, having different air-pressure supplies,

pipe-connections with valves between said reservoirs and tube, andactuatin g devices for said valves under the control of a moving carrier for successively opening and closing said valves, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination of pipe or tube 'A, gate or valve B, locking device for holding said gate out of the path of said tube A, reservoir E, having pipe-connection c with valve e,.and actuating devices for said valves B and 6' under control of a moving carrier in tube A, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination of tube A, having branch G and movable section a, reservoir E,

having pipe-connection c with valve 2', gate or SAMUEL F. LEAKE. Witnesses:

S. J. VAN STAvoREN, CHAS. F. VAN HORN. 

